Dangote Group, NNPC subsidiaries seal strategic gas supply agreements

Three subsidiaries of Dangote Industries Limited—Dangote Petroleum Refinery, Dangote Fertiliser Plant and Dangote Cement Plc—have scaled up their Gas Sales and Purchase Agreements (GSPAs) with subsidiaries of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) to meet the growing energy needs of their expanding operations.

According to a statement issued on Sunday, the agreements were signed with Nigerian Gas Marketing Limited and NNPC Gas Infrastructure Company Limited (NGIC) at the unveiling of the NNPC Gas Master Plan (GMP) 2026, tagged NGMP 2026, held at the NNPC Towers in Abuja over the weekend.

It noted that the expanded gas supply arrangements are expected to support Dangote Group’s Vision 2030 by boosting output across its industrial assets, ensuring a cleaner and more reliable energy supply, and underpinning ongoing and planned expansion projects.

Last week, the NNPC Ltd unveiled its Gas Master Plan (GMP) 2026, aimed at driving industrialisation and strengthening the nation’s energy security.

The Gas Master Plan 2026 is an offshoot of the Nigerian Gas Master Plan 2008, a strategic framework designed to maximise economic benefits from Nigeria’s abundant gas resources.

A key feature of the GMP 2026 is its full alignment with the Nigerian Decade of Gas Programme.

It is expected to serve as the definitive framework for coordinated gas sector development, execution discipline and value creation over the next decade

According to the statement, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Petroleum Refinery, David Bird, signed on behalf of the refinery, while Arvid Pathak, the Group Managing Director of Dangote Cement Plc, signed on behalf of the cement business.

Mustapha Matawalle signed on behalf of Dangote Fertiliser FZE.

Major milestone

Speaking at the signing ceremony, Mr Bird said the agreements represent a major milestone in the refinery’s expansion drive and a proactive step to secure the vast energy requirements needed to support increased production capacity.

He said the refinery is positioning itself to scale operations sustainably by locking in a reliable gas supply amid rising domestic energy demand.

For Dangote Cement, Mr Pathak described the agreements as critical to achieving the company’s strategic objectives, particularly its transition to cleaner energy sources.

He said the gas supply guarantees will support the company’s drive towards the adoption of compressed natural gas (CNG) as Autogas, while also meeting the growing gas demand arising from expanded production capacities across Nigeria.

The agreements, he added, align with efforts to reduce emissions by promoting cleaner fuel alternatives for industrial operations and transportation.

At Dangote Fertiliser FZE, the gas agreements are expected to support the company’s fertiliser capacity expansion projects, given that natural gas is the primary feedstock for fertiliser production.

Gas Master Plan and national strategy

On his part, Nigeria’s Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, described the Gas Master Plan as a deliberate shift from policy formulation to disciplined execution anchored on commercial viability and integrated sector-wide coordination.

“Today’s launch is not merely the unveiling of a document; it represents a deliberate shift towards a more integrated, commercially driven, and execution-focused gas sector, aligned with Nigeria’s development aspirations,” Mr Ekpo said.

“Nigeria is fundamentally a gas nation. With one of the largest proven gas reserves in Africa, our challenge has never been potential, but translation—translating resources into a reliable supply, infrastructure into value, and policy into measurable outcomes for our economy and our people. The Gas Master Plan speaks directly to this challenge.”

He noted that the plan’s focus on supply reliability, infrastructure expansion, domestic and export market flexibility, and strategic partnerships aligns with the Federal Government’s Decade of Gas Initiative, positioning natural gas as the backbone of Nigeria’s energy security, industrialisation and just energy transition.

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In his address, Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd, Bashir Ojulari, described NGMP 2026 as a bold, execution-anchored roadmap designed to unlock Nigeria’s vast gas potential and elevate the country into a globally competitive gas hub.

Mr Ojulari said Nigeria holds about 210 trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of proven gas reserves, with upside potential of up to 600 Tcf, making it one of the world’s most significant hydrocarbon basins—an advantage reinforced by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) and the government’s gas-led energy transition agenda.

“The plan is structured not just to deliver—but to exceed—the Presidential mandate of increasing national gas production to 10 billion cubic feet per day by 2027 and 12 billion cubic feet per day by 2030, while catalysing over $60 billion in new investments across the oil and gas value chain by 2030,” he said.

According to him, the plan prioritises cost optimisation, operational excellence and the systematic advancement of gas resources from 3P to bankable 2P reserves, while strengthening gas supply to power generation, CNG, LPG, mini-LNG and critical industrial off-takers.

Reaffirming his commitment as Chief Sponsor of the initiative, Mr Ojulari said NNPC Ltd has adopted a more collaborative and investor-centric approach in shaping NGMP 2026, with strong alignment across industry stakeholders, partners and investors.